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Yes, we're talking about building a web design portfolio again. Because, frankly, it's super hard to do. And many of you still have questions about it.
After I give you these 4 ideas for growing your web design portfolio, I’m going to leave the rest in your capable hands. 😉
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After years of running my own web design agency, I’ve seen a lot of people make some crucial web design mistakes. (and refuse to learn from them)
I want to keep you from making those same mistakes.
By removing these 16 things from your website, you can instantly fix these mistakes and improve it today.
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It wasn't until I completely removed these bad habits from my life that my lofty dreams began to materialize into reality.
I'm willing to bet that you're hooked on at least 3 or 4 of these bad habits right now. Some of you may even be trapped with all 6 of them.
And I personally guarantee that if you commit to removing all of these bad habits from your life, starting today, your life will quite literally be transformed.
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My fellow web designers out there know all too well that clients love to ask every question under the sun before choosing you to build their website.
So let me ask you something...
Why aren't you doing the same thing?
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I’m not even joking when I say that, out of all of the questions I receive about running a web design business, about 70% center around the “web design process”.
I’m going to give you the web design process that I personally follow with each of my clients. It is by no means the definitive process for all web designers, and I’m sure there are many out there who would disagree with me.
But it works for me. And it helped me scale RapidWebLaunch into a successful web design agency.
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New York City, winter 2015. New York had just had their warmest Christmas in history, with temperatures rising all the way up to 72F.
There I was, chilling in a swanky blues bar in Manhattan, sipping on a delicious bourbon. I was about to get a Famous reminder on what real happiness is. And, more importantly, what it ISN'T.
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I recently found myself in the waiting room of a physiotherapist, hoping to find a solution to some troublesome neck woes. In the center of this waiting room, hanging on the wall directly in front of me, they had a large TV playing a set of 10 or so commercials on repeat.
One of them in particular caught my eye...
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For those of you who have been following along with me over the past few years, you'll know that I've been singing Weebly's praises for quite some time. Weebly empowered me to get my goal of building my own web design business out of my dreams and onto the keyboard. I will always be grateful for that.
But time and unforeseen circumstances can change a lot. Especially in business. In the blink of an eye, something can go from empowering your business to hindering it.
This is what happened with my relationship with Weebly...
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While most web designers have the luxury of living a commute-free lifestyle, and working from home in their PJ's and Captain America slippers, many still enjoy listening to podcasts while doing other mundane activities like working out, cleaning or doing the dishes.
Web designers like me!
The following are the 5 web design podcasts I listen to in such situations, and what I feel to be the best podcasts for web designers. (other than this one OBVIOUSLY)
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User experience (or UX), in the broader sense of the term, is pretty self-explanatory. It is the experience a visitor/user/customer has when using your product/service/tool.
When it comes to web design, we will be discussing the experience a user has when navigating your website.
SPOILER ALERT: It literally means life or death for your website.
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I hate doing sales. Always have too. It was my least favorite part about working on the family business with my dad and, if I’m being honest, it’s the least favorite aspect of running my own web design business today.
But sales is essential. So if you want to build a successful web design business, you need to learn to love it. What helps me to learn to love things that I instinctively hate?
Get really good at it...
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Work/life balance is a common term used by startups and big corporations alike.
Employers use it to show potential hires that they are the progressive, modern, forward-thinking type of business you’d want to be a part of. You know, the ones that are totally cool with you ditching the 9-5 grind.
Potential candidates use it to show they’re not interested in working for the overbearing, punch-in/punch-out, old-fashioned companies of yesteryear. Especially those dang millennials, who demand freedom and individual accountability.
The problem is, the definition of a good work/life balance varies widely depending on who you talk to...
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Web design is an incredibly crowded industry. If you have a small business, you likely receive dozens of emails and phone calls every month from someone trying to sell you web design. Mostly from India or Bangladesh…
How would I get myself noticed as a COMPLETELY new web designer? How would I get any clients?
Here are 3 things to know when starting your own web design business...
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Building a website is merely the first step to building a killer online presence. The real work takes place afterwords. And for some reason, many web designers are choosing not to get involved in this valuable work. Why they make that choice is beyond me. But I'm here to (hopefully) change their mind.
Making real passive income with your web design business is possible. You don't have to use shady business tactics or cheap sales gimmicks to get it either. And your web design clients will get a ton of value from it.
It is a true win for everyone involved. And I'm going to show you how.
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I recently simplified and detoxed my smartphone. I deleted apps, turned off notifications, and created a search-powered interface. (this also happens to be my most popular video ever, by far)
Deleting these six phone apps has made the largest impact on my health, focus and productivity.
What makes these apps perfectly primed for deletion is the fact that you don’t have to stop using them completely. These apps all have a web version that is just as good of an experience, and sometimes even better.
If you want to regain your focus and productivity, and improve your overall mood and well-being, you need to delete these six phone apps first.
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Along with all of the good things smartphones accomplish comes a whole list of nasty byproducts. Addiction, depression, laziness, low self-worth, bullying, abuse… the list goes on.
I recently tried an experiment with my phone. I wanted to see if reducing the time spent on my phone directly correlates with improved productivity and overall happiness.
Here’s how I did it, and what I learned from the experience.
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Learning web design in 2019 is simpler and faster than ever. That doesn't mean it won't take a lot of work. It just means that it's a lot easier than it used to be.
Every other web design blog will tell you to do things like learn coding, programming and server management. Or they'll tell you it's too late to become a web designer and instead we should prepare to bow to our AI-powered robot overlords.
I'm not going to tell you any of that nonsense. Instead, I'm going to share a simple 5-step process with you. This process will get you prepped and ready to start your own web design business in no time at all.
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The blog reading experience sucks. The majority of blogs are terrible. They ignore the needs and desires of their readers, force antiquated "marketing" strategies and obsess over nothing more than making a cheap buck. These so-called bloggers have tainted the art of blogging.
If you're about to start a blog, or have started one recently, please learn from these people. More specifically, learn what not to do.
You have a massive opportunity to disrupt the blogosphere and gain tons of readers and followers simply by putting the readers' experience above all else. (I know, what a novel idea right?)
These are the 10 biggest blogging mistakes that will make you look like an amateur...
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There are lots of things I’m terrible at, but I’ve always been good with my money. I manage my budget closely, and make sure to have financial goals to strive for. So when I found myself with a large amount of credit card debt, I was beyond frustrated.
My dad and I ran a family business for nearly 10 years. Unfortunately, it came time to shut the business down, and my dad and I both found ourselves suddenly unemployed. And because we had spent the final months of our little business trying so hard to save it, we also had no money.
All I had was my credit card...
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It happens nearly every week.
As I scroll through my social media feeds, and swipe through an endless lineup of stories, that all-too-familiar green and white coffee cup pops into view.
Starbucks has done it again...
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Every time I logged off of another Facebook session, and felt completely indifferent to the time I had just wasted, I justified why I did it. Facebook was still useful because:
(1) My customers and leads hang out there, so I can engage with them and grow my business.
(2) I can connect with like-minded individuals and learn from them.
(3) I still had some family and friends on there that I can’t reach through any other method. (conveniently, at least)
(4) How can I have an online-based business that isn’t on Facebook? I’d look like an idiot.
So here we have four reasons for me to continue to use Facebook. The reasons I used as a crutch for a poor argument. I had to break these reasons down one by one. If I couldn’t justify my continued use of Facebook with just one of these reasons, then the answer would be much clearer...
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What do you do when your business is so successful, everyone starts copying you? How do you fight off all of the copycats and wannabes? You make you part of your product.
As a web designer running your own agency, you can have a powerful and positive impact on your business. Your skills, passions and personality can set you apart from all other web designers out there. And you can also inspire the exact opposite effect, torpedoing your web design business with terrible planning and lazy execution.
These are 10 of the biggest complaints web design leads have when dealing with web designers.
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The reality is, every business has slow periods. It’s not unique to web design. It’s at these low points where your true perseverance and determination has an opportunity to shine. At this point, you have two options:
Quit and go home
Make the most of your spare time to further your web design business
The choice is yours. If you choose option #2, I’ve got some ideas for you. In fact, I have 16 of them...
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*Don't worry, there are zero references to Taylor Swift within*
It's scary to create things for a living. Whether you build websites, write books, share your thoughts online, or craft handmade cup warmers, creating something original and sharing it with the world is daunting.
And it doesn't matter how many times you do it either. Every time you release your new baby to the world you've got butterflies in your stomach.
In the end, it comes down to fear. Fear of judgment. Fear of not being good enough. Fear of looking weird. Fear of standing out. Fear of being alone in your thoughts and ideas.
And fear of haters.
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Time is a finite resource, one that we treat far too casually.
Do you look at spending time the way you think about spending money? Time is a currency, and each day we pull chunks of minutes out of our time wallets, handbags and purses and buy things with our time. What’s the last purchase you made?
You make a budget for your financial resources (if you don’t, you have failed at adulting), so why shouldn’t you do the same with your time?
When’s the last time you performed an audit on how you’re spending your most valuable resource; your time?
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We live in what is considered to be the Golden Age of television. There have never been more high quality shows on TV. The storytelling and production value found in most shows today would have been Best Picture nominations decades ago.
Companies like Netflix have played a big part in that.
And yet, a few years ago, I slowly weaned myself off of my favorite streaming services, culminating in the cancellation of my Netflix account a entirely. Here’s why I did it, and why I have zero regrets.
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I don’t want you to think I’m preaching a defeatist attitude. Far from it. I think we live in an exciting time. The internet is affording so many people the opportunity to build a successful business and design their own lifestyle.
I’m simply commenting on what seems to be a very common theme in the online business world...
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After three years of hard work, I’ve managed to build a successful web design business that allows me to craft my ideal lifestyle. Namely, one that involves a lot of traveling, volunteer work, and not having to sit in a 9-5 cubicle in the sky for 67% of my life.
Lately, I’ve been getting more questions from friends, colleagues, and random internet friends about how I managed to do this, and how they can do it too.
In the process of explaining to them exactly how I did it, I noticed a disturbing amount of recurring excuses that found their way out of their mouths. So, rather than respond to each one individually as they come up, I’ve decided to write a post about it.
I won’t lie to you, it’s… honest. 😬
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Last week, I did something I never thought I’d do. I started this podcast.
“Fantastic. Another random dude who thinks he can do a podcast because he listened to an episode of Serial and bought a Blue Snowball microphone on Amazon Prime Day.” – You, probably
I hear ya. I’ve even said the exact same thing in the past. It certainly feels like everyone and their mom is starting a podcast these days.
I’ve been closely watching the market over the past year and, after careful research and deliberation, here’s why I’ve decided to jump into the podcasting game with Launchers – Build a successful web design business.
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A great brand crafts a story. A narrative that people can, want and even need to connect with. A brand with vision and purpose. One that goes beyond simply making money.
In this episode, we're going to discuss The B4: Bulletproof Brand-Building Blueprint.
B4 you start digging holes, laying foundation and erecting walls, we need to have a complete blueprint of our overall plan. (HA, see what I did there? B4? Eh? Eh?)
A successful brand has 5 key elements:
Backstory
Values
Purpose
Vision
Strategy
Let’s go through each of these one by one.
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So you want more web design clients, eh? I mean, who doesn’t? There are a lot of different methods to go about getting these clients, but I’m willing to bet you’ve tried most of them already.
“Set up an Upwork profile!”
“Ask your friends and family for referrals!”
“Engage your professional network and tell them about your new web design business!”
“Hire a teenager to sign-spin your company’s logo in front of Staples!”
These aren’t bad strategies. Many of them can pay off handsomely. (let me know how that sign-spinning goes, I just came up with that off the top of my head)
But, they’re not as effective as using Google Maps. That’s right. Google. Maps. Here’s how you can use Google Maps to acquire new web design clients...
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Recently, someone who was interested in my web design services expressed her (all too common) frustration to me:
“I just don’t know how to do this. One guy is quoting me $400, you’re quoting me $1,500, and this other guy is saying it’s gonna cost me $10,000! How the heck do I decide which one is worth my money??”
Pricing your web design services can be difficult. As it is for any digital trade. You can try to explain all of the work that goes into building a website. The keyword research, navigation planning, sitemap structuring, search engine optimization, graphic designing, performance optimizing, yada yada yada… But your client’s eyes are going to glaze over real quick.
Then there’s the downright shadiness of the web design industry as a whole. Sketchy web designers who make dubious claims are everywhere. And what about those guys from overseas who low-ball their competitors by offering to build entire websites for $200? All of this combines to make things confusing for the customer.
What can you do to alleviate your clients’ concerns while also charging a fair price for your services? I’m glad you asked…
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Getting your website to load blazingly fast has never been more important. With each progressive algorithm update, Google is prioritizing high quality content and stellar user experiences.
Website performance is a crucial part of offering that stellar user experience. In fact, the average user backs out of a website if it takes longer than just 3 seconds to load.
If you’re still making keywords the main priority of your website’s SEO strategy, you’re in for a rude awakening over the next 1-2 years. Let’s try to avoid that, shall we? 🤓
Here are the 9 simplest ways to make your website load faster right now.
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You’re starting a web design business. You have the skills. You have the motivation. You have the passion and patience to see this through to the end.
But you don’t have customers. And you want some. Nay, need some. Badly.
Well, I have good news and bad news. Good news! I have some ideas for you that will pay off. Bad news… 95% of you won’t even bother attempting them
And that’s because they’re not easy. But, for the other 5% of you who are all-in, this can pay off big time.
I’ve been in your shoes before. I know what you’re feeling. It sucks. But that means I also know what it takes to get web design clients when you have no portfolio to show for it.
And I’m here to share my experience with you. Let’s dive in.
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In my research for this episode, something became abundantly clear to me. There is a lot of misinformation about what skills you need to have in order to design websites.
Most of this information included things like “HTML!”, “CSS!” and “Javacript!”
C’mon guys. This isn’t 2002. You don’t need to know any of that stuff to build great websites. Or even to build your very own web design business.
There are, however, some really important skills that you must know. Crucial skills that I believe are not discussed enough.
Some of these may even be surprising to hear. But hey, that’s why I’m here. 😉
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Building my own web design business is the most fun I’ve ever had while working. It was also a ton of work.
There is nothing easy about building a business, and the same goes for building your own web design agency. It takes skill, commitment, persistence, courage and consistency.
Through hard work, patience and a ton of trial and error, I carved my own path to web designer success. Of course, I had a ton of help along the way through various support channels, including random internet people who helpfully wrote advice for me to find through Google.
And now it’s my turn to return the favor.
In this episode, I'm giving you a 13-step plan to follow to build your very own web design business in just 24 hours. Yep, you heard right. 24 hours.
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